Hollywood speaks about the Gender Pay Gap

While watching the Oscars last night, I found it very inspiring to see how intelligent, articulate actresses spoke out against the unequal status of women in the United States.

Nominee Reese Witherspoon declined to answer questions about her stunning dress, asking reporters to assist her in publicizing her #AskHerMore campaign, which is designed to put the the focus on a woman's work and creativity instead of what she is wearing. (I thought about our conversation about how we spend so much time talking about Michelle Obama's outfits and toned biceps and less about her hard work for education and health.)

In her acceptance speech, Patricia Arquette proclaimed, ‘It’s our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America!’" This prompted Meryl Streep to jump out of her seat and and shout “YES!” repeatedly. I felt like doing the same!

Below is article about how much less Hollywood actresses are paid compared to actors, especially after they have aged. The article talks about how this is a "microcosm of today's society," and shows how women's worth is frequently connected to their appearance.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/01/30/hollywood-women-pay-salary-men/5050433/

Please also read these interesting, yet unsettling facts that illustrate the gender pay gap in the United States and how women are succeeding but yet have far to go to have equal rights, status and compensation in the workplace. All of the following statistics come from the March 2015 issue of Marie Claire magazine:

There are 161 million women in the US versus 156.1 million men.
47% of people in the US workforce are women.
$37,791- the median annual earnings of women 15 or older (versus $49,398 for men)
56.8% of all college students are women (11 million women)
63% of all master degree holders are women.
53% of all PhD degree holders are women.
17% of Fortune 500 company board members are women.
26- the number of female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies
100 women in congress (of 535 total members)
5- the number of female governors.
46- number of women who have been awarded the Nobel Prize between 1901 and 2014.
64% of eligible women voted in the 2012 Presidential election (versus 60% of men)